Cord and tape clip for venetian blinds



April 29, 1952 Filed Sept. 21, 1950 INVENTOR. Harry 5. Rosenbaum H/S ATTORNEYS olv fiat nted Apr. 29, 1952 CORD AND TAPE CLIP FOR VENEIIAN BLINDS Harry S..Roscnbaum, Baltimore, Md. Application September 21, 1950,'Serial No.'185, 922

4 Claims. (01. 160-173) My invention relates to an improved clip for securing tapes and operating cords to the bottom rail of .a Venetian blind. My clip can easily be installed byhand inabottom rail and .is designed so that the tapes and cords can be easily attached to and removed from the bottom rail of the blind without the use of tools.

Preferably the bottom rail is in the form of a channel having spaced sides joined by a bottom cross wall. The bottom cross wall has a plurality of spaced holes into which the clips can be pressed; the height of the channel sides being sufficient to hide the upper part of the clips from view. Each fastener or clip comprises a portion or member that is at the lower side of the bottom rail of a Venetian blind and has means in the form of pins to which ends of thesides of a tape of the Venetian blind can be readily secured, and a portion or'member that is'at the upper side of the bottom rail and has a keyhole slot which can receive a knotted end of acord of the Venetian blind. The arrangement is such that the cord and the tape can be individually readily released from 01' secured to the clip without disturbing the other.

- In the accompanying drawing I have illustrated a present preferred embodiment of myinvention in which:

Figure 1 is a plan view of a bottom rail with a clip embodying my invention;

Figure 2 is an enlarged perspective view of a part of a bottom rail structure of Figure 1, an end of Figure 2 being shown as a section substantially on the line II-II of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a plan view of my clip, the clip being shown open;

Figure/l is an end view of the clip;

Figure-5 is a side view of the clip; and

Figure 6 is a perspective view of the clip with the broken lines indicating the closed position of. the pins thereof.

Referring to the drawing, a Venetian blind is represented in Figures 1 and 2 as comprising a bottom rail 2, operating cords 4, a pair of tapes 8 each tape having tape sides 8 and If} at the sides of the bottom rail 2, and clips I2 for anchoring the lower ends of the tapes and cords.

In accordance with my invention, the bottom rail 2 is preferably formed of sheet metal shaped to provide two hollow sides as and [6 which are spaced and bridged by a bottom cross wall It so that the bottom rail is in the form of a channel. Suitable caps can be fitted to the ends of the bottom rail for improving its appearance. At properly spaced points along the bottom cross Y each clip i2 comprises a U-shaped upper pori may be latched or'heldl tion or upper bridging member2'2 whichis generally of inverted U-shape, as indicated in Figures 5 and 6. The bridging member .22 comprises a pair of upwardlyextending 'sidesfl and 26, the upper ends of which are joined by atop. side 28. The bridging member 22. has .a'slot 131] preferably in the shape of a keyhole with an enlarged portion capable of receiving a knot "32' in the cord 4, and a narrow portion which is smaller than the knot. Preferably the enlargedportion of the slot as lies partly thesidez'e and partly in the top side 28 of thebridging member 22,. being located centrally lengthwise of the clip sothat the smaller portion of the slot 30 is at the center of the bridging member 22. The' bridging member 22 can be provided with reinforcing ridges 3%. i

The clip further comprises a'pair'of bottom portions or members 38 and All that extend in opposite directions from the bottom edges of :the sides 24 andiii of the bridging-member 22. Since the portion 22 bridges the space between the clip members 38 and 40, the portion 22 has bee'n d'esi-gnated a bridging member. The bottom member38-hasa turned portion $2 for pivotallyreceivinga tape pin to be subsequently described; and the other bottom member Mlhas aholding or latching groove or channel 44 in which the -pin The clip [2 further comprises a pin shaped from a single pieoeof spring-wireso as to provide a shaft portion 48, a pair of pins and 52;}and short turnedin endportions 54 and 55 associated with the pins 50 and 52, respectively. The-shaft portion -48 is rotatably carriedin the turned por ticn 42 of the bottom member 38 In the assembly of a Venetian blind in accordance with my invention. each raising cord 4 is knotted at its lower end as indicated in Figure 2; and each lower end of the tape sides 8 and II) of each tape 6 is stitched to form a comparatively narrow loop 62 for the tape side 8, and a loop 64 for the tape side 10. The size of the clip holes in the bottom rail 2 is such that the length of each hole is preferably slightly less than the corresponding maximum dimension of the clip bridging member 22. As can be seen from Figure 5, the sides 24 and 26 of the bridging member 22 of the clip I2 flare slightly in a downwardlydirection so that there is some springiness to these sides which permits them to flex inwardly. The reinforcing ridges 3B of the bridging member do not prevent this resilience on the part of the clip, so that when a clip is pressed into the associated hole of the bottom rail 2, the sides 24 and 26 of its bridging member 22 flex and press on the abutting edges of the hole so as to hold the clip frictionally in place. However the pressure is small, and the clip can be easily pressed out of the hole in the bottom rail whenever desired.

When the clip 12 is pushed upwardly in its associated hole in the bottom rail 2 as far as it will go, the bottom members 38 and 40 of the clip abut the lower face of the bottom rail. The turned portion 42 and the latched portion 44 of the bottom members depend from the bottom members so as to permit the clip members 38 and 40 to be flush against the bottom rail.

After a clip i2 is in place in the bottom rail 2, the cord knot 32 can be slipped through the enlarged portion of the slot 30 in the clip until the knot lies under the narrowed portion of the slot which then holds the cord. With pin means 46 of the clip open, the looped end 62 of the tape side 8 can be passed over the pin 50 of the pin means 46, and the looped end 64 of the tape side H) can be passed over the pin 52 of the pin means so that the two ends of the tape sides overlap as better shown in Figure 2. The pin means is then moved to closed position indicated by the broken lines of Figure 6. The springiness of the pin means permits its turned ends 54 and 56 to be latched inside of the groove of the latching channel or means 44 of the bottom member 40 of the clip. "i

From the foregoing it is evident that the ends of the cord and tape sides can be manually anchored or secured to the clip, and that they can be released manually by a reversal of the steps described. It is to be noted that the cord 4 can be released from or secured to the clip without disturbing the tape 6; and that similarly the ends of the tape 6 can be released from and secured to the clip without disturbing the cord 4. It is also to be noted that the transverse distance between the spaced sides 14 and [6 of the bottom rail 2 is preferably only slightly more than the corresponding width of a clip l2 so that the amount of sidewise play of the clip in the rail is very limited. Additionally the height of the sides 14 and i6 is preferably more than that of the bridging member 22 of the clip.

While I have described certain present preferred embodiments of my invention, it is to be understood that it may be otherwise embodied within the scope of the following claims.

'I claim: a l

1. In a Venetian blind,'in combination. a bottom rail, a tape having a side at each side of said rail, each tape side having an end loop, a pair of spaced pins, means attaching said pins to the lower side of said bottom rail with said pins extending parallel to the length-direction thereof and between the sides and center line of said rail, each of said pins passing through one of said end loops, each end loop extending down past an edge of said bottom rail and across the lower side of the rail to the pin on the opposite side of the center line of the rail.

2. A clip for anchoring the ends of the sides of a tape and the end of 2. raising cord of a Venetian blind, said clip comprising a bridge member and a bottom member at a lower end of said bridge member, said bridge member having an upper portion with means for receiving and holding an end of said cord, and said bottom member having a pair of spaced pins, each of which is adapted to receive a looped end of a tape side, said pins being pivotally carried by said bottom member, said clip having a second bottom member at the opposite lower end of said bridge member, said pins having turned ends, and said second bottom member having latching groove means removably receiving said pin ends.

3. A clip for a Venetian blind comprising a pair of spaced bottom members, a bridging member joining said bottom members, said bridging member having a pair of spaced sides extending away from said bottom members and a joining upper side, said sides having a keyhole slot adapted to receive the knotted end of a raising cord of the blind, a first of said bottom members having a pair of spaced parallel pins pivoted thereto and adapted to receive sides of a tape for said blind, said pins having ends turned toward each other, said second bottom member having a latching groove, the opposite ends of said groove removably receiving said pin ends.

4. A clip for anchoring the ends of the sides of a tape and the end of a raising cord of a Venetian blind, said clip comprising a bridge member and a bottom member at a lower end of said bridge member, said bridge member having an upper portion with means for receiving and holding an end of said cord, and said bottom member having a pair of spaced pins, each of which is adapted to receive a looped end of a tape side, said pins being pivotally carried by said bottom member, said clip having a second bottom member with means for engaging the free ends of the pins.

HARRY S. ROSENBAUM.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Bell May 23, 1950 

